Lesbian asylum seeker left with horrific second degree burns after homophobic boiling water attack in refuge centre
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A Nigerian lesbian ended up in hospital with first and second degree burns after she and her girlfriend were assaulted in a horrific homophobic attack in an asylum centre.
The victim, Happy, was attacked with boiling water during an altercation in Prinsenbosch asylum centre in Gilze en Rijen in the Netherlands.
The incident occurred when Happy, who lives in a separate asylum centre, was visiting her girlfriend Esther, De Volkskrant reports.
According to Happy, the incident began when Esther was given a gift by a heterosexual female roommate.
When that woman’s husband found out about the gift, he interrogated her on why she had given a present to “a dirty lesbian”.
Esther confronted the man about his offensive comments, and an altercation began. Another Nigerian couple also became involved in the incident.
Happy rushed to report the fight to security, and when she returned with two guards, she saw one of the women pick up a kettle and approach Esther.
“My girlfriend was standing there with her one-and-a-half-year-old son on her arm,” Happy said.
“I pushed her away to prevent anything happening to her and the child. Then I felt a great pain. I was poured over with boiling water, it burned all over my body.”
Happy was turned away from the asylum centre after the attack.
Happy was taken to hospital where she was treated for her injuries and she later returned to her girlfriend’s asylum centre in Gilze en Rijen.
But on arriving, she was told that she had been banned from entry for six months, as her visit on the night of the assault was nor reported to staff in advance.
Happy subsequently spent five hours travelling back to her own asylum centre by train.
“I had to change trains a few times, and I had to sit on the train. That hurt a lot. I hadn’t slept all night and was in shock at what had happened,” she said.
Sandro Kortekaas, who works with an LGBT+ asylum support group in the Netherlands, hit out the asylum centre for allowing Happy to to travel home alone.
“A victim is turned into a perpetrator,” he said.
Since the attack, Esther and her son have been transferred to a different asylum centre. Meanwhile, police are investigating the attack.
On Sunday (August 9), two people, aged 26 and 21, were arrested on suspicion of public violence and aggravated assault.
They remain in police custody.
